CHERUB: Serpent
by Dead Paw
Summary: JamesAdams is sent on his last and most dangerous mission yet:Infiltrating the most devastating terrorist organisation the world has ever seen and gain access to classified info that could help bring them down for good.James must infiltrate the DeathEater


JamesAdams is sent on his last and most dangerous mission yet:Infiltrating the most devastating terrorist organisation the world has ever seen and gain access to classified info that could help bring them down for good

JamesAdams is sent on his last and most dangerous mission yet:Infiltrating the most devastating terrorist organisation the world has ever seen and gain access to classified info that could help bring them down for good.James must infiltrate the DeathEaters

**CHERUB: Serpent**

**Disclaimer**: I own neither Harry Potter, nor CHERUB. No money is being made out of this fanfiction.

Summary:

**1. BRIEFING**

James felt confused as he made his way to Zara Asker's office, the chairwoman of CHERUB. He couldn't have been in trouble because he'd done nothing wrong in the last few days and was retiring from CHERUB in two months so there was no reason for him to be called to her office. The feeling didn't recede as he stepped into the office filled with unfamiliar faces. Confused, James turned to the only face in the room he did know.

"I bet you're wondering what's going on, eh, James?" asked Zara, smiling softly at James. "Well, this is kind of an impetuous meeting thrown together on a matter of importance. If you haven't already guessed, we're sending you on one last mission. I'm sorry that it's at short notice and all, but you're the most qualified agent for this job. Before I introduce everyone to you, be warned that whatever you are told you think is completely illogical, _is_ true." Turning from James, she motioned for him to follow her through the room. "I'd like you all to meet James Adams, the agent most capable for the mission at hand."

Zara led James towards a large, imposing man with tawny hair that made him look slightly like a lion, standing next to a tall elderly chap, dressed in what looked like a bright purple bath robe, with his long white hair and beard tucked into his belt. The large man introduced himself as, "Rufus Scrimgeour, Minister for Magic", while the older gentleman introduced himself as "Albus Dumbledore, the Headmaster at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." There were two other men dressed in robes, who did not give away their names, but their job titles as the Head Auror and the Head of the Dept. of Mysteries. After the initial shock of hearing the words "Magic, Witchcraft and Wizardry," James tried to remember that Zara wouldn't lie to him and pinched himself to make sure it was real. The Cherub was then introduced to the Prime Minister and the Intelligence Minister, before being handed a mission brief by his old mission controller.

"First off, you must know that there is a war going on between what people know as Light and Dark. This war has been hidden from the majority of the United Kingdom, except from the select few that know about magic." Began Zara, as James flicked open the mission briefing. "I myself only found out about it a few days ago, but if you look closely, all the signs are there. For example, all the terrorist activities you've been hearing on the news lately. That's part of it. But please, read the briefing."

_CLASSIFIED_

MISSION BRIEFING FOR JAMES ADAMS _THIS DOCUMENT IS PROTECTED WITH A RADIO FREQUENCEY IDENTIFICATION TAG. ANY ATTEMPT TO REMOVE IT FROM THE MISSION PREPARATION BUILDING WILL SET OFF AN ALARM AND RESULT IN THE IMMEDIATE EXPULSION AND ISOLATION OF THE CHERUB IN QUESTION. DO NOT PHOTOCOPY OR MAKE NOTES_

_Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry_

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a school for talented youngsters with the gift of magic. Built over 1000 years ago by the four most powerful sorcerers of their time, it has become the main input in the UK for Magical Education and is one of the most secure places in the UK. The precise location can never be uncovered as the school is hidden by the most powerful spells possible. Spells protecting the castle include anti-Apparition. The Headmaster may lift these spells, and control of them will be passed on automatically when one Head leaves, and another takes the post. Most electronic devices will not work on Hogwarts grounds because of the mass amount of magic there.

All magical children in the UK are automatically given a place at Hogwarts and receive a letter in the summer before their first term.

_Salazar Slytherin_

A few years after the creation of Hogwarts, the four founders, Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw and Salazar Slytherin had a row, which ended with Slytherin leaving the school. It is not known why this happened or much about Slytherin, but we do know that Slytherin was an Extremely Dark wizard and was thought to have created a secret chamber underneath Hogwarts called the Chamber of Secrets, which was uncovered by student Harry Potter in his second year there.

Lord Voldemort (Formerly Tom Marvolo Riddle) Early Years Tom Marvolo Riddle was born on New Year's Eve, 1926 in an orphanage in London. His mother, Merope Gaunt, was a Pure Blood (someone with all magical relatives for a few generations) and a direct descendant of Salazar Slytherin, died shortly after his birth. Before she died, she named the child after his father, Tom Riddle Sr., and Marvolo Gaunt, her father. Tom Riddle Sr. was a wealthy Muggle living in the village of Little Hangleton who was tricked into love with Merope through what was thought to be a love potion. After a time, it is thought that Merope released her control of Riddle in the hopes that he had really fallen in love with her. To Merope's great sorrow, he abandoned her and their unborn child.

Tom Riddle grew up in a dingy orphanage, completely unaware of his Wizarding heritage. He did have some grasp on his abilities beyond that of normal magical children of his same age, however. Tom could move objects with his mind and cause them to travel floating wherever he wished, manipulate animals and creatures as he wished, speak Parseltongue, and used his power to inflict harm on other orphans. After getting into a fight with one boy, he used his powers to hang the boy's rabbit from rafters. On one occasion, he took two orphans, Dennis Bishop and Amy Benson, into a cave, where he performed an act so horrifying that the two orphans were traumatised into silence. Young Tom Riddle also stole from fellow orphans and hid their possessions in his cupboard like trophies.

When Tom was 11, Albus Dumbledore visited the orphanage and invited Tom to attend Hogwarts. To demonstrate his power, Dumbledore used a Flame-Freezing Charm on Tom's cupboard.

During his time at Hogwarts, Tom became obsessed with Salazar Slytherin and their shared Parseltongue ability and began to research his heritage. After scouring the castle, he discovered the Chamber of Secrets and let loose the basilisk that was kept inside, which killed a young Muggleborn (wizards of Human Descent) girl.

Tom shifted the blame onto third year student, Rubeus Hagrid (now the Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts), who was expelled and his wand snapped. Tom got off scot-free and was even able to get himself an award for 'Special Services to the School'. It was around this time that Tom Marvolo Riddle gave himself the alias 'Lord Voldemort,' to spare himself of the reminder of his 'filthy Muggle father.' This new name was an anagram of his given name: 'TOM MARVOLO RIDDLE', once rearranged, became: 'I AM LORD VOLDEMORT'. The name Voldemort comes from the three French words, 'vol' 'de' 'mort', means 'flight from death'. It was his hope that one day; every wizard would come to fear his name.

Voldemort left Hogwarts top of his class and applied for the post of Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor, a subject taught at Hogwarts (more or less the self defence/P.E. class), but was denied the position because of his young age and told to try again once he was slightly older. Instead of going back to Hogwarts as he had wished, he first got a job at Borgin and Bukes, a notoriously known dark shop before travelling the world, picking up many Dark and forgotten secrets that he would later use to help in his reign of terror.

He returned a few years later a changed man, once again trying for the post of the DADA Prof. but was once again denied. It is thought that between then and the First War he performed many self-enhancing rituals to make himself stronger, wiser and more magically powerful.

_The Rise of Lord Voldemort_

By the early 1970s, Voldemort had a growing legion of thuggish followers he called 'Death Eaters,' and was so fearsome that few dared speak his name. Few people realised he was the same handsome and brilliant boy who had been so accomplished and well liked at Hogwarts. In addition to his Death Eaters, Voldemort formed alliances with dark creatures such as werewolves and Dementors (demonic creatures that literally suck the life out of you); he also controlled armies of Inferi (animated corpses). Many of the witches and wizards who joined him came for a share of the power he offered, but increasingly many joined his following out of fear of reprisal. 'The years of Voldemort's ascent to power were marked with disappearances,' and increasingly open violence.

Voldemort's first reign of terror lasted eleven years. During this time, Voldemort and his minions attacked anyone who resisted or who defended the rights of Muggles and Muggle-born wizards, and marked the gruesome scenes of torture and murder with the Dark Mark lest anyone else think to stand in their way. Whole families were wiped out and many others went into hiding.

The Death Eaters Each Death Eater bore a sign, the Dark Mark, a skull with a serpent protruding from its mouth like a tongue, burned into his or her left inner forearm by the 'Dark Lord'. When they had killed, the Death Eaters would send the same sign into the air, comprised of emerald stars blazing in a haze of greenish smoke, causing terror when it was seen.

The Order of the Phoenix Overwhelmed by reports of deaths, disappearances, and torture in an atmosphere of terror, Bartemius Crouch, then Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, authorised Aurors to use the Unforgivable Curses against suspects, empowered them to kill rather than capture, and some suspects were handed to the Dementors without trial. Still, the Ministry could not cope with the situation, so Albus Dumbledore began organising the resistance, creating the group that became known as The Order of the Phoenix.

The Order was frightfully outnumbered, however, and the Death Eaters were killing the members of the Order off, many times killing their entire families along with them. Lord Voldemort seemed 'mightier than any wizard living,' and had achieved his goal; most of the Wizarding world avoided saying his name, when they spoke of him at all they referred to him as 'You-Know-Who', or 'He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named'.

Severus Snape and the Betrayal of the Potters Severus Snape is the only child of Tobias Snape (a Muggle), and Eileen Prince Snape (a Witch). The Snape household on Spinner's End in an industrial part of northern England was not a happy one. Tobias Snape frequently unleashed his anger on his wife, and Severus, their Wizard child, was neglected or worse.

Severus attended Hogwarts from 1971 to 1978, as a Slytherin. His other classmates included James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Lily Evans and the children of the Death Eaters Avery and Mulciber. Students in other years included Regulus Black and Lucius Malfoy. This was the decade of Lord Voldemort's first rise to power, and the student body at Hogwarts reflected the turmoil of the larger world. Blood status was fair game for schoolyard taunts and Voldemort's power and ideas fascinated many young students. Snape, who allegedly arrived at Hogwarts knowing more curses than most upperclassmen, was one of these students.

Snape and James Potter quickly developed a loathe/loathe relationship, partly because they were both attracted to Lily Evans, and partly because James was so strongly against the Dark Arts. James and his best friend Sirius nicknamed Snape "Snivellus," and taunted him about his unkempt appearance. Both boys rarely lost an opportunity to hex one another.

As they reached maturity, Snape and many of his Slytherin cohorts became Death Eaters. It is not known to what extent he participated in Voldemort's reign of terror, although he always remained in good standing with Voldemort. On Voldemort's orders, Snape applied for a Hogwarts professorship in the winter or spring of 1980 and while eavesdropping on another interview, overheard part of a prophecy that would later lead to Voldemort's attack on the baby, Harry Potter.

This small act was to be a turning point for Snape: when Snape learned that based upon the prophecy that Voldemort planned to attack the Potters to destroy James and Lily's infant son, he was terrified. Snape went to Dumbledore to warn him of the pending attack and to ask him to keep Lily safe. After the Potters were betrayed Snape was so full of remorse that he offered his complete allegiance to Dumbledore, on the condition that Dumbledore never reveal it to anyone. Snape was to stay undercover as a Death Eater, provide Dumbledore with inside information, and protect Harry at the same time. This was something Snape was ideally suited for: he was such an accomplished Occlumens that even Voldemort could not see his thoughts.

On the 31st of October 1981, Voldemort visited the Potters with the intent to kill Harry, but failed as the killing curse he cast was rebounded back onto him, leaving a lightning bolt scar on Harry's forehead.

Harry Potter - Overview After Voldemort's failed attempt on his life, Harry was brought up by his Muggle relatives in Little Whinging, Surrey. Up until his 11th birthday, Harry slept in the cupboard under the stairs in the Dursley household and knew nothing of his magical heritage, or of the horrible murder of his parents.

During his first year at Hogwarts, Harry uncovered and stopped a plot of Voldemort's to capture the Philosophers Stone and use it to regain the body he lost. In his second year, he discovered the Chamber of Secrets and slayed the monster, a Basilisk (a gigantic serpent with eyes that if looked at directly can kill), and rescued fellow Gryffindor, Ginerva Weasley. In Harry's third year, the young teen rescued his Godfather, Sirius Black, from the Dementor's kiss (the process of a Dementor removing the soul through the mouth, making it look like a kiss).

Harry's fourth year was one of his most adventurous. The Quidditch (A magical sport played on Broomsticks) World Cup was interrupted by Death Eaters, with Harry being accused of summoning the Dark Mark, before the blame was passed onto Winky, a House Elf. Once Harry returned to school, he was faced with the Triwizard Tournament, the first of its kind in many years and won, though not without losing a friend. Cedric Diggory was killed by Peter Pettigrew on Voldemort's orders before Voldemort was reborn into his new body. After duelling Voldemort, Harry managed to escape and began spreading the word about Voldemort's return, even though many people didn't and wouldn't believe him. His fifth year was by far the hardest yet. Harry was possessed by Voldemort, attacked by Dementors, witnessed his Godfather's death and discovered the reason behind Voldemort's attack on the Potters.

The Wizarding World's newspapers began to publish articles, claiming Harry as the 'Chosen One' instead of just the 'Boy-Who-Lived'.

_The CHERUB Mission_

The primary aim of the CHERUB mission is to infiltrate the inner circle of the Death Eaters and try to uncover information that will help bring down Voldemort and his minions. The mission is likely to take up to and over one year to complete, and involves four complex phases.

_Joining_

Posing as a Prince (extinct family name), the agent will move in with Severus Snape under the pretence that he is the last of the Prince line – related to Snape through his mother, Eileen Snape nee Prince. The agent will accepted into Hogwarts in his 7th year and will be sorted into Slytherin to chum up to Draco Malfoy and his associates to find a way to get in with Voldemort. It should be easy to make friends with Draco if the agent claims to be a pureblood Prince.

_Intergrating_

The agent will be expected to gain entrance to the Death Eaters and take part in their activities before becoming a full member of the Death Eaters. It should be noted that Voldemort is a master Legillimens (mind reader) and the agent must learn Occulmency (Protection of the mind) sufficiently enough to counter it.

_Entering the Inner Circle_

The agent will have to prove his worth to Voldemort by becoming a master duellist to be allowed access to the Inner Circle. It is not common for Voldemort to let in younger wizards, but if the agent proves himself worthy he'll be allowed access.

_Finding Crucial Battle Plans and Information_

The Ministry for Magic are currently in a state of uncertainty about when and where Voldemort will strike and how badly, so it is vital that the information is gained as quickly as possible. This will be the most difficult phase as the use of electrical equipment is often impossible around high quantities of magic, but Albus Dumbledore has created a spell to counter that, although it does have to be reset every three days.

According to Severus Snape, Voldemort hardly ever leaves his Manor, so any opportunities to plant the charm protected bugs the agent must take.

Although CHERUB and the MoM have had less than a week to prepare this mission briefing, preliminary assessments suggests that the CHERUB agent, if accepted in the Inner Circle and make good use of their espionage training will have an excellent chance of uncovering information that will help bring down Voldemort.

_THE CHERUB ETHICS COMMITTEE UNANIMOUSLY ACCEPTED THIS MISSION BRIEFING BUT REQUESTED THAT ALL POTENTIAL MISSION CANDIDATES CAREFULLY CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING:_

_The mission has been classified EXTREMELY HIGH RISH. Agents may be expected to work in dangerous and barbaric locations without close support from mission controllers._

_The Death Eaters are notorious murderers and will not hesitate to torture._

_Because we do not know exactly where Voldemort's manor is, we cannot send backup into the manor to help the Agent in times of need._

_The length of the mission means you will be separated from siblings and friends for a significant amount of time._


End file.
